Rachel Maddow discusses assault on democracy if Trump is impeached

Rachel Maddow said that if Donald Trump is impeached, the US justice system will be attacked like never before.

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Maddo says:

The first grand jury we’ll hear from is in Georgia, and we’ll hear from them this week. If he thought it was our American version of one of those guys attacking the press for challenging him and attacking the FBI and the Department of Justice for investigating him, then what’s our democracy around the corner , is he charged? What’s around the corner from us is whether accused is an attack on the specific system, the specific system that has the power to charge him and possibly arrest him and try him and try him. It’s one thing (unintelligible) with the people investigating you, but what are you doing with the courts and attacking this system with the same willingness to burn down one of the pillars of our democracy?

Around the world, we know what it looks like when far-right leaders try to dismantle these kinds of systems in order to claim and maintain total power for themselves. We’ve never had to struggle with that here. We have a lot to learn quickly about how to ensure these things stay put beyond what is very likely to come.

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Maddow was right. American democracy has never faced an attack on the court system of the kind that Trump and his allies will launch if the former president is indicted. It is highly likely that almost the entire Republican Party will defend Trump by attacking the government’s rule of law and judiciary.

Trump has been attacking the courts since they stopped him from overturning the 2020 election, but if he is impeached, something far more dangerous could be unleashed. Trump and the Republicans could attack the pillar of our system that upholds the law. It will be a great test that can only be passed if Donald Trump is convicted and held accountable.

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House press pool and congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a bachelor’s degree in political science. His thesis focused on public policy with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and professional memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and the American Political Science Association